449 replies to this topic

[mikeb]

I just joined this group. We just had this happen to us - totally dropped from Google after hiring the company with the initials TP.

I am and have been writing back and forth with Google and hope I can get us listed once again. This is killing our business because Google was one of the top traffic directors to our site. We are self financed and have been in business on the net for 7 years.

Sucks - I went against my better instincts when we hired TP and should have listened to my gut screaming at me to not do this.

The past is in the past and we are trying to move forward if someone has any ideas how to get relisted I am open to listen.

Kimberly

Hi Kimberly,
Well, I guess misery loves company. Sounds like you are similar to my situation and that like me, you went against your gut feeling.
I just wrote a very long, explanatory (and quite emotional) letter to Google. I'm hoping I hear back from them as well.
Can you tell me how long it took for you to hear back?

Mike

[Jill]

That's great that Google is collecting all that info!

Hopefully, they will ban every single one of TP's clients and finally put the heads out of business once and for all.

[SearchRank]

Amen to that, Jill ... Amen to that!

[mikeb]

That's great that Google is collecting all that info!

Hopefully, they will ban every single one of TP's clients and finally put the heads out of business once and for all.

Jill,
I'm sorry but this is where I'd have to disagree. As I've stated here more than once, I blame nobody but myself but in this case, even though TP's clients are abusing the system, I contend that most have no clue or like myself, had some idea it was wrong but got duped. To ban them all would be akin IMO to sending the victim of a Ponzi scheme to jail while the guy at the top of the pyramid goes off free.
I just think that if there were a way to issue a warning or a drop in PR, listing anything but a total ban.

Mike

[Jill]

It seems like the only way that they'll stop doing what they're doing. It's really not illegal, so it's not like you can put them in jail.

I'm sure they have an airtight contract. Aren't they ones that give you a guarantee? Have you tried to get your money back yet?

[qwerty]

First of all, when we talk about Google banning sites, we're not talking about legalities. Google doesn't actually need to have a reason to ban a site. They can list whatever they want.

But what they're doing is getting rid of all sites (or at least trying to get rid of them) that are abusing their system, because those sites are damaging (or are potentially damaging) Google's reputation for returning relevant results to user queries. They're not doing it out of spite against the site owners, though. They could, but it doesn't appear to me that they are. They're taking out sites that have broken their rules, they're making sure that, before those sites can get back in, they're absolutely clean, and (and this is the big part) they're using this to fight back against the people who are really behind this scheme. By asking for information from the people whose sites were using these methods, they're getting more data on the methods they need to fight algorithmically.

It's like arresting someone who bought stolen goods, but offering them leniency if they give up the guy who actually stole the stuff.

[Jill]

Plus, the bottom line is you're responsible for your own Website. If you hire people to mess with it, you're still responsible.

(I know you know this...just reiterating!)

Google needs to ban as much of that kind of blatant spam as they can. It's the only way those companies will stop.

You wouldn't have used the service if you didn't see it working for their other clients. If they have no clients that it's working on, then they can't get new clients at all.

They really need to be out of business so they will stop taking decent people's sites and getting them banned.

I'm really curious as to what their contract says. They obviously must not have a provision saying that they won't do anything considered spamming the engines...

What's their guarantee all about. GET YOUR MONEY BACK! Even if you can't get your site unbanned, at least you won't be double whammied by paying for the privledge of having them ban it for you!

[qwerty]

I'm not going to link to this, since the URL includes the name of the company we're just referring to as "TP", but if you go to a site the domain name of which is that company's name followed by the third person present tense conjugation of what one does with candies such as life savers (damn, I'm subtle), without any hyphens, followed by .com, you will find a site that makes numerous claims about TP's practices, contracts, sales pitches, etc.

I can't tell you it's all true, but it's an interesting read.

[BobetteKyle]

They really need to be out of business so they will stop taking decent people's sites and getting them banned.

I know of a TP client who's site has evidently been dropped from Google, approximately same time as MikeB.

I truly believe she had no clue at all they were doing wrong. She knows her business, but nothing about SEO. She's put a lot of time and work into her business only to be blindsided with this.

Needless to say, she's hot and on the warpath. I sent her to this thread to read the advice. She's already confronted TP, asking for $ back, etc. and plans to follow Bob's advice on trying to get reinstated.

Bad situation.

[projectphp]

...contend that most have no clue or like myself, had some idea it was wrong but got duped.

Responsibility lies with the website owner ultimately. Due dilligence should be mandatory whenever a business hires ANYONE, be they employee, be they consultant, be they web host.

That is the real lesson here: do due dilligence. Not once, but everytime. The very first thing to do is to get references. When it comes to an SEO firm, surely the SE themselves are a great place to start.

I truly do have a lot of sympathy for those caught in these situations, but quite bluntly, if you benefit from practices like these for X months, you should probably sufferat least a portion of that in penance.

[Jill]

I wonder if G just did a whole new round of TP banning. If so, this must not be a very good week over at TP headquarters!

:dribble:

[Jill]

On the other side of the coin, Bobette, my VA emailed me earlier with this little tidbit. She does SEO for some clients and did a site report for one of them. She told them all the good things they could do to their site to make it better for the search engines and their users. But apparently, they've also talked to TP and regardless of the fact that she's shown them countless threads about the bad practices of this company, apparently, they'd still rather go that route.

I hope they get their stupid asses totally banned. No excuse when you've been warned, that's for sure.

I've also had emails from people asking about TP and I usually say "I've never heard anything good about them."

So one guy writes back, "but you haven't heard anything bad either?"

Ummm...no, I say, I've ONLY heard bad stuff.

Normally, I don't like to speak disparaging about other SEO companies, because I don't feel it's my place to do so, but that's it, I'm breaking my rule in this case. This company is very bad news, and it seems that the definitive word needs to be out there so site owners have no more excuses if they end up using them.

[BobetteKyle]

That is the real lesson here: do due dilligence. Not once, but everytime. The very first thing to do is to get references. When it comes to an SEO firm, surely the SE themselves are a great place to start.

There are also consumer protection or "watchdog" groups like The Better Business Bureau (bbb.org), complaints.com, and FraudBureau.com that have searchable complaint databases available. This doesn't always throw up a red flag, though.

[BobetteKyle]

regardless of the fact that she's shown them countless threads about the bad practices of this company, apparently, they'd still rather go that route.

I hope they get their stupid asses totally banned.  No excuse when you've been warned, that's for sure.

I totally agree...we are all ultimately responsible for our businesses. Some people put on blinders and do what they want to anyway, so shouldn't be surprised when they get "caught".

It's just a bummer when someone is trying to make a good decision but - for whatever reason - didn't get the true, full picture before going forward.

To those of you who have been engrossed in the industry a long time - and those of us who have done a lot of studying, reading, and learning - the choices are pretty straightforward. But, for a small business owner with no prior exposure, the options and amount of conflicting material are overwhelming.

A lot of times, I think they don't know what to believe and choose incorrectly - maybe for budget reasons, I don't really know.

[Jill]

This is funny...I just got another email from someone wondering about this company.

In it, they sent me a page on TP's website that listed some current spam sites that are ranking well.

I've sent them to Google.

If anyone is interested. it's t-p.com/10L/ (Only not really T-P but the actually spam company's name)

Google, I hope you're watching so you can ban some more sites!